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Nursing School Guides

Currently there is a shortage of qualified nurses throughout the United States. This is the perfect time and presents the perfect opportunity to get a degree in nursing through nursing education such as an RN program or LPN program. There are more nursing positions and nurse jobs available everyday as more nurses either are specializing in a certain area of nursing or they retire. The requirements for getting a degree in nursing and obtaining a nursing license to begin your nursing career varies from state to state.

There are currently several pathways to becoming a Registered Nurse (RN): Through a diploma program (these are typically offered by hospitals), through an associate's degree nursing program at a two or four-year school, or by completing a bachelor's degree program offered by a traditional four-year undergraduate program. As there are three different education levels available for RNs, there is a lot of discussion over whether or not a higher level nursing education produces better nurses.

All nursing programs involve some combination of classroom learning and supervised clinical experience. These programs are often strenuous, causing many students to joke about "not having a life" until graduation. Nursing program are made up of a challenging group of subjects, including anatomy and physiology, biology, nutrition, and behavioral sciences. Students are also likely to be required to take a varying number general education courses, resulting in a more well-rounded education.

Registered nurses who wish to specialize have many different options from which to choose, even without earning an advanced degree. Specializing allows nurses to gain additional expertise in specific areas of the field. Many nurses choose to specialize because they enjoy caring for a specific group of patients, or because they enjoy the unique work environment provided by certain units. In many nursing specializations, there is an organization that certifies those who are trained and experienced in that particular area. More information on the different areas of nursing, along with the certification requirements, is available on the Nursing Job Descriptions pages for each specialization.

Q: What schools are the best for nursing degrees?

Nursing school can be expensive, and often students need all of the help that they can get to pay for their education. One of the best ways to get help paying for college is through scholarships. A scholarship is a sum of money given to a student by a person or organization to help pay for the expenses associated with education. Scholarships offered by NurseGroups are paid directly to the student, and may be used for any related educational expense while attending school.

Nurses play a vital role in healthcare. They are highly skilled professionals trained in caring for patients. Often, these individuals spend more time with patients than physicians and other healthcare personnel, making them largely responsible for patient experience. Though nurses gain much of their knowledge and education from nursing programs, they should take advantage of other opportunities to learn and develop their skills. While some of these are more traditional learning opportunities, other opportunities to grow as a nurse exist in daily activities and the relationships individuals choose to cultivate.

The Nightingale Pledge was once taken by all new nurses upon first entering the nursing profession. It was named after the famous nursing pioneer Florence Nightingale, who was a championed English nurse. Nightingale laid the foundations of modern nursing with her nursing school at St. Thomas’ Hospital in London (now part of King’s College in London). Though named after this celebrated nurse, the Nightingale Pledge was not written by Florence Nightingale. The Nightingale Pledge was created by a committee chaired by Lystra Gretter, a nursing instructor at Detroit’s Harper Hospital.

All nursing programs involve some combination of classroom learning and supervised clinical experience. These programs are often strenuous, causing many students to joke about "not having a life" until graduation. Nursing program are made up of a challenging group of subjects, including anatomy and physiology, biology, nutrition, and behavioral sciences. Students are also likely to be required to take a varying number general education courses, resulting in a more well-rounded education.

Like many of the variables discussed, the cost to earn an education is more important to some than it is to others. More often than not, though, cost is a factor in determining where to go to nursing school. Often, the cheapest route to becoming a nurse is to complete an LPN or RN diploma program or an associate's degree. For those who wish to earn a BSN or higher, public institutions are typically cheaper than smaller, private schools. In addition, it is often less expensive to attend school in one's own state of residence due to out-of-state fees that are applied elsewhere.